Historical Background of Group Work

Historical Background of Group Work

Introduction

Before it became a field, group work was viewed as a movement. It evolved from a field to a method, and then back to a field (Papell in Middleman and Goldberg, 1988). Group work was critical in coping with a number of shifts occurring in the United States in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries: the industrialization of the country; large population shifts from rural to urban areas; and an enormous wave of immigration, primarily to urban areas in the United States (Konopka, 1972; Garvin, 1997). The history of social work can be considered in three distinct phases:

1. The establishment of a group work association in the 1930s; 
2. The merger of the group work associated with the National Association of Social Workers in the 1950s; and 
3. Tthe resuscitation of group work in the 1970s. Nonetheless, between 1910 and 1920, people involved in adult education, recreation, and community service began to see the full potential of group work. 

They recognised that groups might be used to assist individuals in participating effectively in their communities, enriching their lives, and assisting those whose primary relationships were unsatisfying or dysfunctional. Thus, they became aware of the potential for groups to assist individuals in developing both social and problem-solving skills. They began utilising groups effectively in reducing delinquency and rehabilitating individuals who were maladjusted. The organizations that laid the groundwork for group work were by definition self-help, informal, and recreational in nature; they existed in the form of settlement houses, neighbourhood centres, YMCAs, Scouts, Camp Fire Girls, Jewish Centers, and Camps, as well as in industrial labour union organising. Later dubbed 'group work agencies,' the innovative feature that united and appealed to these services were involvement in small groups, a democratic way of life, community duty, and perceived membership in national or even global activities.

Work was critical in addressing a number of shifts occurring in the United States in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries: the industrialization of the country; large population shifts from rural to urban areas; and an enormous wave of immigration, primarily to urban areas in the United States (Konopka, 1972; Garvin, 1997). The history of social work can be seen in three distinct phases: (1) the establishment of a group work association in the 1930s; (2) the merger of group work with the National Association of Social Workers in the 1950s; and (3) the resurgence of group work in the 1970s. Nonetheless, between 1910 and 1920, people involved in adult education, recreation, and community service began to see the full potential of group work. They recognized that groups might be used to assist individuals in participating effectively in their communities, enriching their lives, and assisting those whose primary relationships were unsatisfying or dysfunctional. Thus, they became aware of the potential for groups to assist individuals in developing both social and problem-solving skills. They began utilizing groups effectively in reducing delinquency and rehabilitating individuals who were maladjusted. The organizations that laid the groundwork for group work were by definition self-help, informal, and recreational in nature; they existed in the form of settlement houses, neighborhood centers, YMCAs, Scouts, Camp Fire Girls, Jewish Centers, and Camps, as well as in industrial labour union organising. Later dubbed 'group work agencies,' the innovative feature that united and appealed to these services were involved in small groups, a democratic way of life, community duty, and perceived membership in national or even global activities.

Club Formation...

The first kind of group setting dates all the way back to Sir George Williams, who organized the hardworking laborers of Bridgewater draper shops toward a Christian lifestyle. The popularity of such organizations prompted the establishment of similar clubs in other draper shops and among other young men, resulting in the establishment of London's Young Men's Christian Association in 1844. Soon after, the YMCA's waves reached Germany and England, encouraging women and girls to seek Christian friendship. In England, parallel movements with less religious overtones began concurrently in two locations in 1855. These were directed directly by women – Emma Roberts, who founded a prayer union among her friends, and Mrs. Arthur Kennard, who established the General Female Training Institute in London for nurses returning from the Crimean War. Mrs. Kinniard and Miss Roberts decided to combine these two groups due to their success. 

Thus, the YWCA was founded in 1877. Taking into account the less fortunate lady, privileged women in the United States have started numerous programmes over the years. Mrs. Marshal O's founding of the Union Prayer Circle in 1858 was one such prominent movement. This building was converted into a boarding house in 1860 and renamed the Ladies Christian Union in 1866. Rooms on the top floors of the warehouses were rented and outfitted to fulfil the demands of New York's wage earners. The Boston YWCA was founded in 1866 by thirty women concerned with the temporal, moral, and religious wellbeing of their fellow beings. Both the YMCA and YWCA have established themselves as pioneering organisations committed to educational, recreational, and religious activities for young men and women, and their publications have made substantial contributions to the literature on social group work. These associations make a significant contribution by offering competent volunteers and promoting group activity.

The Settlement  Movement

Social disorder, the industrial revolution's offspring, necessitated the establishment of an organised body to address the welfare needs of those bearing the burden of industrialization. The settlement movement was founded in 1889 in Chicago by Jane Addams, who founded the Hull House. The movement emphasised the causes of poverty and operated on three axes ("three Rs"): research, reform, and residence. Jane and the other pioneers, who believed in a collective approach, established the following objectives for the movement:The citizens of the area could share their learnings of cultural and religious among the needy.The association of settlement workers with their immediate surroundingsThe group's responsibility for social improvement.

The crowded immigrant population became the primary focus of the majority of settlement workers. They could observe the changing situations and demands of the populace while coordinating the many resources available to meet the needs of the poor. They offered a range of services, including educational, health, and legal assistance, as well as advocacy for reforms in social policy. According to Rameshweri Devi and Ravi Prakash (2004), settlements also acted as hubs for English and citizenship training, as well as groups that exposed older and younger immigrants to the finest of American society. Stanton Coit focussed his efforts on the establishment of neighbourhood groups, which unintentionally resulted in the development of strong bonds between community members. He founded the Neighbourhood Guild, America's first colony, in 1886. Picnics and other leisure activities were included to encourage youth participation and the development of settlements into structured informal associations. In The Settlement Horizon, Woods and Kennedy observe that the settlement movements have created several opportunities for 'the actual interplay of association.'

The Movement for Playgrounds and Recreation

The recreation movement's contribution to group living is noteworthy. When a youngster learns to associate with and accept another child to play with, the socialisation process begins. Even though the English Village Green was the first municipal playground in the United States, group games were not introduced until the eighteenth century. In 1868, Boston's first church established a vacation play ground, and in 1876, Chicago's Washington Park opened for team games. However, it was not until 1885, when Marie Zakrzewska founded a sand park in Boston, that the playground was recognised as a movement in the history of social group activity. She received the notion for such a concept witnessing the children playing in sand mounds in public parks. Soon after, villages, churches, and schools established playgrounds and summer camps. The popularity of play ground movements and the demand for additional tax-supported play grounds prompted the establishment of the Playground and Recreation Association of America in 1906. Schools and other social service agencies backed the movement, emphasising the critical role of such group experiences in a child's social and emotional development. The World War Community Service programmes established during World Wars I and II boosted the recreation movement significantly. Originating in privately owned little playgrounds for the underprivileged, recreation movements grew in ways that were unimaginable. It has grown to the point where it now accounts for the majority of the country's wealth.

The World Wars 

Following World War I, social scientists began to focus on community-based groupings. Frederic Thrasher (1927) was one of the first to do so, studying delinquent gangs in the Chicago area. He conducted research on groups by befriending gang members and watching gangs' internal processes. Thrasher found that each gang member had a status inside the organisation that was related to the functional role the person had within the gang. Thrasher Following World War I, social scientists began to focus on community-based groupings. Frederic Thrasher (1927) was one of the first to do so, studying delinquent gangs in the Chicago area. He conducted research on groups by befriending gang members and watching gangs' internal processes. Thrasher found that each gang member had a status inside the organisation that was related to the functional role the person had within the gang. Thrasher

Theoretical Foundation

The 1930s saw the rise of small group theory, particularly Cooley's distinction of Primary and Secondary groups. Tonnies' distinction between gesselschaft and gemeinschaft helps in a better understanding of groups as well. The 1950s saw a proliferation of information and the development of theory pertaining to small groupings. Among the prominent researchers were Bales, Homans, Bion, Lewin, and Weber, to name a few. Conformity, communication and interaction patterns, leadership, interpersonal preference, and social perception are all significant components when dealing with group processes in social work. Additionally, psychoanalytic theory, learning theory, field theory, social exchange theory, and the system theory that describes group functioning should be mentioned. A Glimpse of Professionalisation and the Evolution of Social Group Work Literature While it is frequently assumed that group work is significantly older than casework, group work firms began only a few years after casework agencies established their specialty. Clara Kaiser established the first group work course at Western Reserve University in Cleveland's School of Social Work. Grace Coyle continued to design the course after she moved to New York in 1935. Group Work was taught in two ways: as a technique and as an area of practise. By 1937, approximately ten schools offered specialised social work programmes. However, as Schwartz points out, the true historical distinction between the two is that casework quickly became associated with the profession of social work, but group work did not become formally associated with the profession until much later, at the 1935 National Conference of Social Work. This arrangement remained fairly informal until 1955, when the National Association of Social Workers was founded (Toseland & Rivas, 1998). In the early 1930s, a small group of group workers (15-20 persons) convened in New York City for casual discussions. This group proposed that the NCSW host a gathering of group workers. The American Association for the Study of Group Work was created in 1936 with the goal of clarifying and developing both group work's concept and practise. Under the leadership of Arthur Swift, this group founded the National Association for the Study of Group Work. This early group was motivated by a'missionary spirit' (Kraft, p. 13). By 1939, the National Conference of Social Work began to regard group work as a distinct subject. Group work became more closely associated with the social work profession during the 1940s, but group workers retained tenuous ties to recreation, adult education, and mental hygiene until the 1950s. The National Association of Social Workers was founded in 1955 by group workers and six other professional organisations (NASW). Indeed, group work was inextricably linked to the approach of community organisation and its concept of citizen engagement. Later in the 1940s and 1950s, group workers began to use groups more regularly in mental health settings to give therapy and remediation. This was impacted considerably by the growing interest in psychoanalysis and ego psychology, as well as partially by World Combat II, which caused a serious lack of educated employees to care for mentally handicapped war veterans. It was sparked by a resurgence of interest in group therapy in psychiatric settings throughout the 1950s. Although the emphasis in the 1940s and 1950s was on utilising groups to improve individual members' social functioning, interest in using groups for recreational and educational reasons persisted, particularly in Jewish community centres and youth organisations such as the Girls Scouts and the YWCA. During the 1940s and 1950s groups were also employed for objectives of community development and social action in many different neighbourhood centres and community organisations. Simultaneously, there was an increase in interest in the study of small groups as social phenomena. Following World War II, there was a tremendous increase in group work literature. "Social Group Work Practice" by Gertrude Wilson (1949), "Social Group Work" by Harleigh B. Trecker (1949), and Grace Coyle's "Group Work with American Youth" (1949). By 1939, the National Conference of Social Work began to regard group work as a distinct subject. Group work became more closely associated with the social work profession during the 1940s, but group workers retained tenuous ties to recreation, adult education, and mental hygiene until the 1950s. The National Association of Social Workers was founded in 1955 by group workers and six other professional organisations (NASW). Indeed, group work was inextricably linked to the approach of community organisation and its concept of citizen engagement. Later in the 1940s and 1950s, group workers began to use groups more regularly in mental health settings to give therapy and remediation. This was impacted considerably by the growing interest in psychoanalysis and ego psychology, as well as partially by World Combat II, which caused a serious lack of educated employees to care for mentally handicapped war veterans. It was sparked by a resurgence of interest in group therapy in psychiatric settings throughout the 1950s. Although the emphasis in the 1940s and 1950s was on utilising groups to improve individual members' social functioning, interest in using groups for recreational and educational reasons persisted, particularly in Jewish community centres and youth organisations such as the Girls Scouts and the YWCA. Groups were also used for community development and social action in a variety of various neighbourhood centres and community agencies during the 1940s and 1950s. Simultaneously, there was an increase in interest in the study of small groups as social phenomena. 

Following World War II, there was a tremendous increase in group work literature. "Social Group Work Practice" by Gertrude Wilson (1949), "Social Group Work" by Harleigh B. Trecker (1949), and Grace Coyle's "Group Work with American Youth" (1949). Group work has also gained traction in south-east Asia, particularly in India (which will be explored later) and China. Over the last decade, social work education in China has grown at a breakneck pace. Chinese authorities have been vocal in their support for social work, and the government announced a series of new social policy initiatives in 2006 targeted at professionalising social work. This has provided academics and educators with a chance to consider the potential impact and future issues facing the civil affairs sector and social work instructors. Group work has endured adversity. Its’ endurance is a testimonial to the perseverance of the core of people as well as the power of the technique (Ramey interview, 1988). (Ramey interview, 1988). 

What sustained group activity during the "silent" years was the presence of personalities and renowned teachers and propagandists such as [William] Schwartz, [Saul] Bernstein, the [Sonia & Paul] Abels, and [John] Ramey" (Ephross interview, 1998). With their "great spirit of inclusion, validation, and humanity that is embedded in group work ideology" (Papell, 1997, 10), the individuals who formed AASWG determined that group work should survive. The ideology of group work has endured the test of time because it is based on a firm grasp of the facts of human life and the human condition. Citizenship, involvement, community, mutual aid, and democracy continue to be powerful concepts. "We were correct then, and we are correct now," Ephross (interview, 1998) stated. Middleman and Goldberg (1988, 234) remind us that "group work was and continues to be the bedrock of social work's heritage of social transformation and concern for oppressed people."